Serial lung ultrasounds in pediatric pneumonia in Mozambique and Pakistan

Abstract Lung ultrasound (LUS) is a promising point-of-care imaging technology for diagnosing and managing pneumonia. We sought to explore serial LUS examinations in children with chest-indrawing pneumonia in resource-constrained settings and compare their clinical and LUS imaging courses longitudin...

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Main Authors: Amy Sarah Ginsburg, Imran Nisar, Lola Madrid, Jennifer L. Lenahan, Benazir Balouch, Pio Vitorino, Jun Hwang, Alessandro Lamorte, Neel Kanth, Rubao Bila, Marta Valente, Rosauro Varo, Susanne May, Quique Bassat, Fyezah Jehan, Giovanni Volpicelli
Format: article
Language:EN
Published: Nature Portfolio 2021
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Online Access:https://doaj.org/article/285b06e0819948c2a33dc1db2c3975e2
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Summary:Abstract Lung ultrasound (LUS) is a promising point-of-care imaging technology for diagnosing and managing pneumonia. We sought to explore serial LUS examinations in children with chest-indrawing pneumonia in resource-constrained settings and compare their clinical and LUS imaging courses longitudinally. We conducted a prospective, observational study among children aged 2 through 23 months with World Health Organization Integrated Management of Childhood Illness chest-indrawing pneumonia and among children without fast breathing, chest indrawing or fever (no pneumonia cohort) at 2 district hospitals in Mozambique and Pakistan. We assessed serial LUS at enrollment, 2, 6, and 14 days, and performed a secondary analysis of enrolled children’s longitudinal clinical and imaging courses. By Day 14, the majority of children with chest-indrawing pneumonia and consolidation on enrollment LUS showed improvement on follow-up LUS (100% in Mozambique, 85.4% in Pakistan) and were clinically cured (100% in Mozambique, 78.0% in Pakistan). In our cohort of children with chest-indrawing pneumonia, LUS imaging often reflected the clinical course; however, it is unclear how serial LUS would inform the routine management of non-severe chest-indrawing pneumonia.